President Lee: "NongHyup's Opaque Structure Must Be Corrected... Accelerate Reforms for Direct Elections of Cooperative Members"

President Lee Chairs Chief Aides' Meeting
"We Must Fully Return NongHyup to the Hands of Farmers"
"Swiftly Complete Reforms to Governance Structure and Strengthen Democratic Oversight as Part of Normalization Measures"

On May 14, President Lee Jaemyung pointed out the opaque decision-making structure of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (Nonghyup) and issues of corruption among certain executives and employees, instructing that reforms be accelerated, including the introduction of a direct election system for cooperative members.

Yonhap News Agency

During his opening remarks at the presidential chief aides' meeting held at the Yeomin-gwan of the presidential office that afternoon, President Lee stated, "A major transformation of rural communities and agriculture must begin by addressing the structural ills entrenched throughout our agricultural sector."

President Lee identified the normalization of Nonghyup as a prerequisite for agricultural transformation. He emphasized, "Normalizing Nonghyup, which serves as the foundation of agriculture, is of utmost importance," adding, "Nonghyup bears a heavy responsibility to protect farmers' rights and promote the sustainable development of rural communities."

He went on to note that Nonghyup has faced ongoing criticism for failing to fulfill its fundamental role. President Lee remarked, "The reality is far from ideal. Due to the opaque decision-making structure and incidents of corruption among some executives and employees, Nonghyup has been constantly criticized for failing to carry out its core responsibilities."

He stressed the need to return Nonghyup to a farmer-centric organization. President Lee said, "Nonghyup, built on the sweat and dedication of farmers, must be fully and promptly returned to the hands of farmers." He further instructed, "From the perspective of cooperative members' sovereignty, the governance structure should be improved as soon as possible, and normalization measures such as strengthening democratic control should also be completed without delay."

In addition, President Lee urged, "I ask you to accelerate reforms to related systems, such as the introduction of a direct election system for cooperative members, so that Nonghyup can truly transform into an organization that takes the lead in advancing agriculture and improving the quality of life for farmers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.